Suarez Controversy Drags On As Apology Questioned

Liverpool insist that thei apology did not come as a result of pressure from Standard Chartered

Liverpool have insisted that they did not apologise for the events that took place at the weekend because of pressure from Standard Chartered, with the club maintaining they knew what happened was wrong before sponsors even became involved.

Luis Suarez refused to shake Patrice Evra's hand on Saturday, and after Kenny Dalglish refused on television to acknowledge that the striker was wrong in his actions, both issued apologies on Sunday admitting that they had not appropriately represented the club.

Standard Chartered was rumoured to be the reason for the apologies, with a statement from the bank reading: "We were very disappointed by Saturday's incident and have discussed our concerns with the club."

But Liverpool now insist that they understood their actions were wrong separately from their sponsors becoming involved in the issue, with apologies necessary to move the situation forward.

"Ian Ayre kept Standard Chartered fully informed of developments over the course of the weekend," a statement from Liverpool said. "The actions the club decided to take on Sunday were supported by Standard Chartered."

Liverpool had staunchly defended Suarez throughout the racism row with Evra, even going so far as to claim that Evra wasn't a credible witness.

But the club decided not to appeal the Uruguay international's suspension after he was found guilty of racial abuse, and last week he casually hinted to a South American radio station that he had in fact done the wrong thing.

"I knew what I did and there is a kind of football law that says, 'What happens on the pitch, stays on the pitch and that's the end of the story," he said, as reported by the Daily Mirror.

Gus Poyet, meanwhile, who has been one of Suarez's defenders, believes that foreign players need more support when adapting to the Premier League.

"The Professional Footballers' Association should look at it," he told the Daily Mail. "They are responsible for the players - for good and for bad. That's the real first job of the PFA.

"(But) it works both ways. It's the part of a player that he needs to put himself in a new situation and adapt very quickly and, of course, the part of the club. It would be unfair to make one or the other responsible.

"Things happen in other countries that, in England, are not acceptable, and we need to realise that. It's not that we are better or worse, we are just different.

"We accept things that in England you don't. We don't accept things that you do. I've been here a long time to know that. You need to be in a place like England for at least a few months; I would say years."

While Suarez went to Liverpool just over a year ago, the 25 year old had spent five years in Europe beforehand, including four at Dutch club Ajax, before making the move to England.